Category Physics

This is the first material with conductivity properties that can be switched on and off using ferroelectric polarization. Credit: Thor Balkhed

Ferroelectric self-assembled molecular materials. Scientists have developed the first material with conductivity properties that can be switched on and off using ferroelectric polarization. Professor Martijn Kemerink of Linköping University has worked with colleagues in Spain and the Netherlands to develop the first material with conductivity properties that can be switched on and off using ferroelectric polarisation. The phenomenon can be used for small and flexible digital memories of the future, and for completely new types of solar cells.

The research group shows the phenomenon in action in three specially built molecules, and proposes a model ...

Contrary to classical bits, quantum bits can assume two states at the same time: Right and left, yellow and blue, zero and one.
Credit: KIT

Hurricanes, traffic jams, demographic development – to predict the effect of such events, computer simulations are required. Many processes in nature, however, are so complicated that conventional computers fail. Quantum simulators may solve this problem. One of the basic phenomena in nature is the interaction between light and matter in photosynthesis. Physicists of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have now made a big step towards quantum mechanics understanding of plant metabolism. This is reported in Nature Communications.

“A quantum simulator is the preliminary stage of a quantum computer...

Mantis Shrimp-inspired Camera enables Glimpse into Hidden World

By mimicking the eye of the mantis shrimp, Illinois researchers have developed an ultra-sensitive camera capable of sensing both color and polarization. The bioinspired imager can potentially improve early cancer detection and help provide a new understanding of underwater phenomena. “The animal kingdom is full of creatures with much more sensitive and sophisticated eyes than our own,” said Viktor Gruev , a University of Illinois professor of electrical and computer engineering and co-author of the new study. “These animals perceive natural phenomena that are invisible to humans.

“Polarization of light – that is, the direction of oscillation of light as it propagates in space – is one such example...

A new microscopy method developed by an ORNL-led team has four movable probing tips, is sensitive to the spin of moving electrons and produces high-resolution results. Using this approach, they observed the spin behavior of electrons on the surface of a quantum material. Credit: Saban Hus and An-Ping Li/Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy

A new method that precisely measures the mysterious behavior and magnetic properties of electrons flowing across the surface of quantum materials could open a path to next-generation electronics. Silicon-based semiconductors rely on the controlled electrical current responsible for powering electronics. These semiconductors can only access the electrons’ charge for energy, but electrons do more than carry a charge...